Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Mark will be bringing his one day Risky Business seminar to Tupelo, Mississippi on Friday, November 30, 2007.

Those who attend this comprehensive all day seminar will learn how independent films are financed and distributed.

Topics include organizing your company, raising financing via pre-sales, debt and limited partnerships, negotiating tactics, principal terms of the acquisition/distribution agreement, cross-collateralization and creative accounting. Particular attention is paid to how producers and filmmakers can protect their interests by watering down warranties, getting added to the E& O policy, using lab access letter to retain possession of the negative, and utilizing termination and arbitration clauses.

This seminar is being organized by the Tupelo Mississippi Film Commission and is co-sponsored by Tupelo Convention & Visitors Bureau; Tupelo Film Commission; BancorpSouth; MS Film Office; MS Arts Commission; and Gardner-Watson Ice House.

Cost of the seminar is General - $65 • Attorneys - $175.00Lunch is included. Attorneys receive

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON REGISTRATION AND SPECIAL EVENTS CALL 1-800-533-0611 or 662-841-6521or email prasberry@tupelo.netPennsylvania Changes its Film Incentives

Pennsylvania changed its film incentive program by passing Act 55 which creates the Creativity in Focus: The Pennsylvania Film Production Tax Credit Program, effective July 1. The new program provides a 25 percent film production tax credit for film production expenses incurred in the commonwealth.

The tax credit is available for feature films, television films, television pilots, episodes of a television series or commercials intended for national distribution. In order to qualify for the program, 60 percent of the total production expenses must be incurred in Pennsylvania. No more than $75 million per year can be awarded. Filmmakers interested in taking advantage of the tax credit program should contact the PA Film Office. More information is available at http://www.filminpa.com/.

Da Vinci Code Copyright Lawsuit Dismissed.

Judge Michael A. Posner of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts granted summary judgment against John Dunn, the Massachusetts author of “The Vatican Boys,” who claimed that Dan Brown’s book “The Da Vinci Code" infringed his copyright.

Writer John Dunn sought $400 million in damages from Dan Brown, his publisher and the three movie studios that distributed the motion picture based on Dan Brown’s book.

Dunn claimed numerous similarities between his novel and "The Da Vinci Code." He claimed they were similar in themes, characters, setting, storyline, plot points, and concept.

The defendants asserted that they never read Dunn's book before "The Da Vinci Code" was published, and that the two works were distinctly different.

Judge Posner noted the differences in many of the key characters, describing Dunn's attempt to liken the two central female characters as "absurd" and the villain in "The Da Vinci Code" with a character in Dunn's book as "patently ridiculous."

Congratulations to our client filmmaker Greg Chwerchak whose film Greetings From The Shore premiered at the Montreal Film Festival. The movie is a coming-of-age romance starring an ensemble cast including David Fumero (“One Life to Live”), Paul Sorvino ("Goodfellas"), Jay O. Sanders ("Half Nelson"), and Kim Shaw in a debut performance.

The film has been added as a "Special Screening" to the Fort Lauderdale Film Festival on Fri, October 26, 2007.

Cuttin Da Mustard

Congratulations to the filmmakers behind Cuttin Da Mustard which was the closing night film of the Pan African Film Festival and winner of the Festival Choice Award for Best Feature.

The film was also shown at the Malibu Celebration of Film and The International Black Film Festival of Nashville. It will next be shown at the American Black Film Festival on October 26, 2007. The picture stars Brandon T. Jackson (Roll Bounce, host for Up Close and Personal Tour ), who is a lead in the $125 million dollar Dreamworks movie Tropic Thunder which also stars Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr., Jack Black and Nick Nolte.

10th Annual Method FEST set for March 27 - April 3, 2008 in Calabasas, Calif

The 10th anniversary The Method Fest independent film festival, coming off the success of opening night film, "Waitress," has set its 2008 dates for March 27 - April 3, 2008 in Calabasas, Calif. The Method Fest also had several other recently released films including "Jimbabyne," "Lonely Hearts," and "Fido," plus others including "Black Irish" with upcoming release dates.The Method Fest, the only film festival in the U.S. that puts its focus on acting, is looking for character and story-driven films featuring strong performances.

The Method Fest features American and international feature films and short films and is named after "The Method" school of acting, which revolutionized the approach in acting, particularly in film.

Deadlines for film submissions for the 10th annual The Method Fest are December 15 (early) and January 31, 2008 (late deadline). Entry fees are $40 (early) and $50 (late) for features; $30 (early) and $40 (late) for short films; student entries are $25. Screen formats accepted are 35 mm, BetaCam SP, DigiBetaCam and HDCam.

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About Me

A veteran entertainment lawyer, arbitrator, expert witness and author, Mark Litwak has provided legal services or acted as a producer rep on more than 100 feature films. He is the author of 6 books including: Reel Power, Dealmaking in the Film and Television Industry (winner of the 1995 Kraszna-Krausz Book Award), Contracts for the Film and Television Industry, and Risky Business: Financing and Distributing Independent Film. He is also the author of the popular CD-ROM Movie Magic Contracts.
As a law professor, he currently teaches at the U.S.C. School of Law, and has previously taught at the Univ. of Puget Sound and Loyola Law Schools. He has been on the faculty at UCLA for 24 years. He has lectured for the American, California and Texas bar associations. A frequent speaker, he has lectured at many universities including Harvard, the American Film Institute, Columbia University and NYU. He has also presented movie industry seminars in England, Australia, South Africa and Canada.
Mark Litwak is AV®
Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubble and has been named a Superlawyer multiple times by the publishers of Law and Politics Magazine.